This day in history

• In 1504, Christopher Columbus, stranded in Jamaica during his fourth voyage to the West, used a correctly predicted lunar eclipse to frighten hostile natives into providing food for his crew.

Today is Friday, Feb. 29, the 60th day of 2008. There are 306 days left in the year. This is Leap Day.

On this date:

• In 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson’s National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (also known as the Kerner Commission) warned racism was causing America to move “toward two societies, one black, one white — separate and unequal.”

• In 1792, composer Gioachino Antonio Rossini was born in Pesaro, Italy.

• In 1940, “Gone with the Wind” won eight Academy Awards, including best picture of 1939.

• In 1956, President Eisenhower announced he would seek a second term of office.

• In 1960, the first Playboy Club, featuring waitresses clad in “bunny” outfits, opened in Chicago.

• In 1968, the discovery of the first pulsar, a star which emits regular radio waves, was announced by Dr. Jocelyn Bell Burnell in Cambridge, England.

• In 1968, at the Grammy Awards, the 5th Dimension’s “Up, Up and Away” won record of the year for 1967, while album of the year honors went to The Beatles for “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.”

• In 1984, Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau announced he was stepping down.

• Twelve years ago: About 30 television and entertainment industry executives met with President Clinton at the White House, where they promised to devise a TV ratings system.

• Four years ago: Facing rebellion, Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigned and left for exile in the Central African Republic. “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” won a record-tying 11 Academy Awards, including best picture; Sean Penn took the best-actor prize for “Mystic River” and Charlize Theron won best actress for “Monster.”